Cooperative Adventure 'A Way Out' Announced at EA Play

By Rory Young 23 May 2018

Electronic Arts’ first surprise announcement during its E3 2017 press conference is named A Way Out, from the creators of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. A Way Out is a cooperative adventure game featuring two different characters working together in unique ways, including, “car chases, stealth passages, melee fights, shootouts,” and more. A Way Out is a striking departure from Brothers, by seemingly being a mix of Uncharted adventure and Prison Break problem solving.

A Way Out‘s gameplay debuted with a look at the game’s two protagonists, Vincent and Leo, working to escape from prison. Gameplay included paired wall climbing, distracting guards, starting fights, and several other unique scenarios requiring intense cooperation. Neither Vincent nor Leo are particularly ethical gentlemen, each more than willing to get their hands dirty in order to accomplish their likely selfish goals.

All things considered, there are cooperative games and then there are cooperative games. A Way Out is 100% cooperative and features split-screen the whole way through, whether you’re playing online or with couch co-op. Hazelight Studios wants players to be aware of what their partner is doing, for better or worse.

Writer and Director of A Way OutJosef Fares, also creator of Brothers, described his game and its cooperative focus as follows:

“The idea for A Way Out came when me and a friend tried to find a story driven co-op game that wasn’t a drop-in/drop-out experience. We simply could not find a game like that. We’re also bringing an innovative look into how to tell the story of both these characters. Players will be immersed in the game with the way we change the display from a full screen experience seamlessly to different cinematic split-screen formats. By focusing on the two characters in different ways, it opens up a huge variety of gameplay, as we really wanted to avoid repetitions so they will get to know the characters through very different situations.”

Electronic Arts revealed A Way Out as part of its Originals partnership program, which searches for exciting projects from independent studios in order to provide them with the funding and support they need to fully realize their project.

A Way Out is currently planned for release in early 2018 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.